Vivienne Westwood and the Ethical Fashion Programme
The collaboration started in 2010 with just three bags, produced in Nairobi and made from recycled roadside advertisement banners and redundant safari tents. The bags were hand crafted by marginalised communities of women such as single mothers, widows, HIV/AIDS victims and others living in extreme poverty. Designs, sent from London, required five key community groups to be trained in the use of the specialised equipment needed to achieve them.
| The high quality of this order was possible thanks to the production and quality control of Ethical Fashion Africa (also known as the Hub). Three styles of bag, titled Get a Life, Gaia Heart and Quilted Orb were shipped on time and were shown on the Paris Catwalk. All were then sell-outs when they appeared in stores around the world and at e-tailer, Yoox, in February 2011.
This first collaboration provided full-time employment for 69 women living in the vast city slums of Kibera and Korogocho. In addition, because one of the three bags featured exquisite decorative detailing, part-time work and skill training for hundreds of other women to meet this challenge was a positive result.
Collaboration with Vivienne Westwood has expanded each season. All those involved from the beginning remain employed, meaning these artisans have been able to improve their living conditions substantially, pay for school fees, medical expenses and other needs.
The skills and enthusiasm of African craftswomen, the professionalism of those at the hub and the commitment of the Vivienne Westwood team sums up the Ethical Fashion Programme’s ethos; NOT CHARITY, JUST WORK.
http://www.intracen.org/trade-support/ethical-fashion/vivienne-westwood/
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